


A Realization

by fishlongandprosper



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Fake AH Crew, Friends to Lovers, I guess???, M/M, Major Character Injury, Mutual Pining, more like friends with benefits to lovers lol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-14
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-03-18 05:09:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13674891
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fishlongandprosper/pseuds/fishlongandprosper
Summary: Ryan and Gavin have been having an on again off again friends with benefits situation for a while. Things are good between them.And then Gavin gets hurt. And Ryan realizes something about their relationship.





	A Realization

**Author's Note:**

  * For [OnePhoenix](https://archiveofourown.org/users/OnePhoenix/gifts).



> This is a Valentine's Day gift for my bf Cas!! <33 It was supposed to be for Christmas but lol figured it'd be better as a Valentine's gift since I'm broke af right now. I hope you like it darling!!

Ryan and Gavin had been on again, off again with their relationship. They’d do casual hook ups every now and again, the whole deal having been brought up by Gavin. Ryan didn’t mind it. The Brit knew his way around the bedroom and knew how to momentarily tame the Vagabond.

They had been doing this for about six months now. Usually they would get together after heists. When the adrenaline still lingered in their bones and their nights remained sleepless.

Ryan would usually sneak into Gavin’s room, the scent of gunpowder still lingering to the both of them. It was usually rough and fast, the shake of their hands not really letting them take things slow. Ryan usually had to growl and push Gavin into the bed to still him enough to get him ready. The Brit was never patient and was always wanting to rush to the good part despite the pain it would cause him.

And it was that impatience that brought them here. Gavin hadn’t stayed still during their heist of a bank. He wandered around trying to do who knows what. He hadn’t been paying attention and gotten shot by the cops in the bank. Ryan had just barely managed to take them out before Gavin collapsed against the wall.

The crew had rushed out of there, rushing to their medic, Alfredo. The kid was new, but they trusted him. Well, it was more like Geoff trusted him and Ryan was too aware of Gavin’s current state to not have a choice  _ but _ to trust him.

And it was several anxiety filled hours later that Alfredo came out. Apparently Gavin got shot worse than they thought. He’d live though. Just a few new scars and a follow up appointment to check the stitches out were all that was going to happen to him.

Ryan didn’t realize his hands were shaking until Jack grabbed them. He smiled at Ryan, telling the other to go see Gavin. They were all going to get looked over and head home. Ryan nodded, walking to the room where Gavin was.

He sucked in a breath when he saw the other. He looked peaceful on the bed, but the unnatural paleness of his skin sent a shiver down Ryan’s spine.

The Gent sat in the chair beside Gavin’s bed, simply watching him breathe and looking at the heart monitor that was hooked up to him. The little beeps of the machine made him relax slightly, but not enough.

Ryan didn’t know why he was so worried about Gavin. It wasn’t like they were official or had any real feelings for the other. They just messed around whenever the other called. They kept things casual with no real deep ties.

But that didn’t cover up the ache in his chest. It didn’t explain why he had screamed in rage and pain when he saw Gavin get shot. It didn’t explain why he had so fiercely demanded to hold Gavin in the van as they sped off to the nearest safe house. It didn’t explain why he was here, watching like a vigilant family member for Gavin to wake up.

And it was as he looked down at Gavin that his mind started whispering to him. That he felt more than just casual partnership between them. That he felt something more for Gavin. A feeling he had sworn off from experiencing.

Yet.. it explained a lot. Why he felt so drawn to the other. Why he wanted to protect him, to keep him safe, to hold him close and forget about everything that wasn’t them and the warmth of their bodies. It explained why he had panicked so much when he heard the shots. Why he was near hysterics as he picked up Gavin and pressed his hands to the bullet wound in him.

It was as he was thinking all this that he remembered he was still caked in blood and face paint. Most of the blood Gavin’s. Maybe he should call someone to bring him some spare clothes. He’d probably be here for a while.

He sent a text to Jack, asking the other Gent to go to his apartment and bring him a bag with some clothes and other various things. He trusted the other to not go snooping where he wasn’t asked to. Jack and him had a mutual understanding of boundaries and he respected that about the bearded man.

Ryan took the time to wash the dry blood off his hands. He scrubbed his face paint off his face as best as he could. There were still some persistent stains from it on his face, but with the face wipes Jack was bringing, it’d all be gone soon.

He didn’t dare shower though. He had barely been able to pull himself away to even clean himself up this little bit.

When he went back to the room Gavin was in, he was surprised to see the Lad groggily looking around while he laid still. When he focused enough to look at Ryan, he smiled softly, visibly relaxing more into the bed.

“Hello, love,” Gavin greeted, his voice hoarse and slurred by the drugs Alfredo had more than likely injected into him.

“Hey,” Ryan whispered, sitting down back in his seat. Gavin tried to sit up, but Ryan was quick to push him back down into the bed. “Easy. You don’t wanna pop your stitches.”

“What happened?” Gavin asked, looking to Ryan. His eyes still looked a little glassed over with the drugs, but he could see he was trying to shake them off.

“Well,” Ryan started, pouring a bit of water from the pitcher Alfredo had left into a cup, “you got shot. Nothing major. Alfredo patched you up.”

“Ah,” Gavin said in understanding. He moved to sit himself up, but Ryan stopped him and helped him up properly.

He handed the cup to Gavin, helping him take careful sips to help clear the fog of the drugs in his system. When he was done, he set the cup aside and sat back down in his spot again.

“How long was I out?” Gavin asked, looking at the clock and then at Ryan.

“About five hours from the drive here to the surgery,” Ryan said, leaning back against the chair.

Gavin hummed as he made himself comfortable in his current position. The room became quiet except for the machine currently hooked up to Gavin. Ryan thought idly about how if it was connected to him, it would be a lot wilder than the smooth jumps in Gavin’s.

Ryan’s mind screamed at him to say something, anything, to fill the void. To confess, to tell him his realization of how he felt. But his jaw felt forced closed and his mouth felt dry. It took him a bit of concentration to force himself to speak.

“I was worried,” he blurted out. “About you… if you would make it.”

Ryan felt his cheeks burn as he looked down at his lap. To think the Vagabond, great mercenary and killer, was getting  _ embarrassed _ talking about his feelings.

“Aw that’s so sweet, Ryan! Well you don’t have to worry about me. I’m as tough as they come,” Gavin joked, chuckling but stopping as he gently laid a hand on his side.

“Not at that moment,” Ryan mumbled.

“What?” Gavin asked, and he swear he could hear his head tilt as he looked at him. “Ryan, what do you mean, Ryan?”

“You just… when I carried you to the van. You looked so weak and fragile in my arms. You were bleeding so much and you weren’t talking to anyone. I-I thought for a moment you had stopped breathing because your chest was so still I---” Ryan paused in his rambling, trying to formulate his thoughts into a cohesive sentence. “I thought I  _ lost _ you, Gavin. And I didn’t know what I was going to do if I  _ did _ .”

Ryan hugged himself, trying to even his breathing as he looked down at his lap. He hated being this vulnerable, but all he could at this was be just that. And he felt raw and exposed and too afraid to look Gavin in the face. He didn’t often admit feelings like this, so it didn’t surprise him when he looked up and saw shock written all over Gavin’s face.

Gavin hesitated a moment before reaching out to Ryan, beckoning him closer. Ryan moved closer wordless, fighting back the sting in his eyes as Gavin started running his fingers through his hair.

“You didn’t lose me, Ryan. You never could,” Gavin soothed.

“But I could because--”  _ Because we’re not together, because we’re not immortal, because I’m too scared to admit how I feel. _

“Hush. I mean it, Ryan. You can’t lose me. Because well…” Gavin paused, leaving them in silence. Ryan noted that the beeping of the heart rate machine had sped up.

“I fancy you, Ryan. And you can’t lose someone if they fancy you,” Gavin finally admitted. Ryan was pretty sure his heart and the monitor picked up pace at the same exact time.

“You… you what?” Ryan asked, looking up at Gavin.

“I… I like you. A lot. I know we’re supposed to keep things casual between us, but well… I can’t quite stop my heart from feeling the way it does, can I?” Ryan sensed a tone of hurt and defensiveness in his voice. He was probably preparing himself for Ryan to yell at him, and he wouldn’t blame him. He’d do the same exact thing if he was in Gavin’s situation.

“No. I guess not,” Ryan said. And then he did something that he’s probably going to regret later, but in this moment it felt right.

He kissed Gavin. It was hesitant and gentle, Ryan almost scared that pushing Gavin too far would hurt him now. He briefly registered the heart rate monitor speeding up to dangerous levels, but he didn’t care. He could unplug it later.

Gavin clung to him once the initial shock wore off. Ryan simply gently cupped one of his cheeks, rubbing over his cheek with his thumb gently. When he pulled away, he saw the dark blush spread across Gavin’s cheeks.

“You just-- But-- What?” Gavin finally managed to squeak out causing Ryan to chuckle.

“I… like you too, Gavin,” Ryan admitted softly, glancing away from Gavin. “I guess I’ve felt like this for a while but never really realized it. Probably because I thought you didn’t feel the same.”

“Well that is rubbish,” Gavin huffed, gently grabbing Ryan’s cheeks to make the other look at him. “I’ve felt the same for a while too. I just thought well… pretty much the same thing that you did.”

“We’re a couple of idiots, aren’t we?” Ryan asked, making Gavin laugh.

“Yeah. I suppose we are,” he said, pressing a kiss to Ryan’s forehead. “A couple of idiots in love.”

Ryan flushed a bit at the gentle gesture. He swallowed as he carefully pulled away, causing Gavin to frown.

“Sorry just… still bloody. Don’t want to get any on you,” he explained causing Gavin to look at the dried blood that had flaked off onto his hands.

“I guess that is a problem,” he said, carefully cleaning his hands off onto the bed sheets.

“You  _ guess _ ?” Ryan asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I’m a bloody criminal, Ryebread. I’m kind of used to blood at this point. Especially since well…” Gavin trailed off, looking aside to hide the small blush forming on his cheeks again.

He was going to ask Gavin to elaborate when he heard the doorbell to the safe house go off.

“That must be Jack,” Ryan sighed, getting up. “Asked him to bring me some clothes since I didn’t have any backups here.”

“Ryan…” Gavin started, grabbing at Ryan’s sleeve before he walked off. “Can we talk more about this after you get all changed up?”

“Yeah. Of course we can. Why?” Ryan asked, looking down at the other.

“Just so I can know if I can call you my boyfriend and text the other lads,” he said with a shrug, a sly grin on his face as he looked up at Ryan.

Ryan fish mouthed for a few moments, a dark blush creeping onto his cheeks at what Gavin was asking. The second ring of the doorbell snapped him out of his thoughts.

“I-- We’ll talk about that  _ much _ later tonight,” Ryan finally said, quickly running off the door. The last thing he heard was Gavin laughing.


End file.
